"This does not mean that your Baptist Church is going to be forced to conduct same-sex wedding"

In the video, above, produced by the Southern Poverty Law Center, the California couple at the center of the SPLC's lawsuit, Cooper-Harris v. U.S., explain why having their marriage recognized by the federal government and by the Veterans Administration will make such a difference for them. Tracey Cooper-Harris, at right in this freeze-frame, is a decorated 12-year veteran of the U.S. Army.

Shannon, left, and Rebecca Frye of Huntsville, Ala., celebrate their legal marriage in the courthouse in Manhattan where they received their marriage license on June 12, 2013. When they exited together, Rebecca Frye, the couples, both heterosexual and homosexual, called out "Congratulations!" (Courtesy of Rebecca Frye)

HUNTSVILLE, Alabama - Now, said Rebecca Frye, a social worker in Huntsville and newlywed for less than a month, she gets to file a joint federal income tax return with her new wife.

Rebecca Frye is, she said, "super-excited" about the U.S. Supreme Court decision, announced today, Wednesday, June 26, 2013.

Statements celebrating and condemning the decision have blazed through the airwaves today, with some conservative groups claiming the decision infringes on freedom of religion. It will take years for the legal dust to settle, experts say, but for Frye, the decision means she can, in fact, breathe a little more freely.

Now, Frye said, she and her bride, Shannon Frye, who were married on June 8 in Huntsville and then flew to New York City to register their marriage legally, will be entitled to the same 1,100 federal benefits as any other newlywed couple.

"We can file our taxes together," Frye said. "If the worst should happen and one of us die, the widow can inherit our joint property without paying inheritance tax. We'll be eligible for survivor's benefits from Social Security."

Not that their marriage is about the money, she said. They love each other and wanted their pledge to care for each other the rest of their lives to be blessed by their pastor and church family and celebrated by their friends and relatives.

Those friends and relatives packed the Playhouse of Huntsville's Von Braun Center for the wedding on June 8 for the couple, who both love live theater and music. Frye prays that those whose religious teachings prohibit same-sex unions will see that what she and her beloved did is no threat to any heterosexual couple.

"They've had gay marriage for years in Massachusetts, and I bet not one heterosexual couple has gone to a judge and said they want to get divorced because gay and lesbian couples can get married in that state," Frye said. "Marriage is a civil rights issue. It helps create a stable family and financial security for that family."

Most of all, Frye said, the decision will not affect the right of any minister to refuse to perform a wedding any more than current laws prohibit a priest, say, from refusing to marrying a Catholic and non-Catholic.

"This does not mean that your Baptist Church is going to be forced to conduct same-sex weddings," Frye said. "In America, we still have the freedom to express our religion - but that freedom does not have any bearing on who I choose to spend my life with."

Shannon Frye, left, and Rebecca Frye had their union blessed by their pastor, Huntsville's Rev. Dr. Bob Hurst of The United Church of Huntsville, in a joyful celebration of friends and family on the Playhouse stage of the Von Braun Center on June 8, 2013. Their honeymoon in New York City the next week included a legal ceremony in New York, one of 13 states that recognize same-sex marriage. (Courtesy of White Rabbit Photography)

Moore issued his statement hours after the decision was announced today, Wednesday, June 26, 2013. Southern Baptists are among the Christian denominations who have affirmed that only heterosexual marriage is biblical.

"This is a new legal reality," Russell said. "Same-sex marriage is on the march, even apart from these decisions, and is headed to your community, regardless of whether you are sitting on Capitol Hill or in a rural hamlet in southwest Georgia or eastern Idaho. This is an opportunity for gospel witness."

That witness, Russell said, should be clear that "the gay and lesbian people in your community aren't part of some global 'Gay Agenda' conspiracy. They are, like all of us, seeking a way that seems right to them. If we believe marriage is as resilient as Jesus says it is (Mark 10:6-9), it cannot be eradicated by a vote of justices or a vote of a state legislature."

"Same-sex marriage is headed for your community," Russell said. "This is no time for fear or outrage or politicizing. It's a time for forgiven sinners, like us, to do what the people of Christ have always done. It's time for us to point beyond our family values and our culture wars to the cross of Christ as we say: 'Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.' And that's good news."

The June 24, 2013, U.S. Supreme Court decision declaring it unconstitutional for federal benefits to be denied to people who are legally married on the basis of the gender of the people opens a way to remove other walls that have separated gay and lesbian couples from the same treatment as heterosexual couples, both legal and religious experts say. (The Huntsville Times file)

Children of God

The good news for the Rev. Dr. Bob Hurst, pastor of The United Church of Huntsville, is that the law is beginning to catch up with, for him, the sacred premise of the divine value of each human being. The United Church of Christ, the denomination to which The United Church of Huntsville belongs, ordained its first minister who is gay in the 1970s and in 2005 affirmed the sacredness and equality of marriage.

"Why is this important for people of faith?" Hurst said, repeating the question. "Because these are human beings. They're children of God. So it's that simple. They need to be embraced as children of God. Several families in our congregation have been waiting for this decision."

Hurst, who officiated at the wedding of Rebecca and Shannon Frye, said it is not illegal in the state of Alabama for a minister to officiate at a same-sex ceremony. But if a couple wants the marriage registered legally, they have to travel to another state for the license.

"Now the federal government, at least, will recognize a marriage no matter where the couple lives," Hurst said.

Thom Watson, right, and Jeff Tabaco show the rings which they exchanged during their 2009 wedding ceremony at their home in Daly City, Calif. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled today, Wednesday, June 24, 2013, in the lawsuit that challenged the constitutionality of the state's gay marriage ban, known as Proposition 8. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

Marriage laws

Judges in Huntsville who are experienced in family legal issues in Huntsville, said they could not comment on the law, but that their oath of office compels them to follow the law, whatever that is.

But over lunch today, several said, the general consensus was that it's only a matter of time before a homosexual couple walks into the Madison County Courthouse and asks to register their marriage -- and then will sue when they are refused, as current state law demands.

Most other legal experts agree.

"Nothing in this decision commands the state to do or not to do anything," said Caren Short, one of the attorneys at the Southern Poverty Law Center who is working on the case of Cooper-Harris v. U.S. over the right of a California veteran to secure veterans benefits for her wife. That case, heard in May, is awaiting the judge's decision.

"But this does make clear that the Supreme Court recognizes that federal law cannot single out a class of people and deny that group benefits based on disapproval of that group," Short said in a phone call with The Huntsville Times. "This signals a shift in the judicial mindset. Discrimination based solely on who someone loves and chooses to marry is not going to stand very much longer. I predict challenges to state bans like those in Alabama."

Alabama has passed two laws addressing same-sex marriage: The 1998 Marriage Protection Act that defines marriage as a "sacred covenant between one man and one woman," and the 2006 state Constitutional Amendment 774 on "Sanctity of Marriage," approved by more than 81 percent of voters, that restates the ban on same-sex marriage and says that Alabama will not recognize the legality of same-sex marriages contracted in other states.

So while nothing changes in the immediate short-term for many couples, Short said, one thing she knows for sure.

"Our clients are going to be rejoicing all night - and so will we," Short said. "There is still a lot to do, but this is a great step, a huge, huge step, for full civil rights for people who are gay and lesbian."

Note: Attempts to reach several religious leaders in Huntsville respected for their conservative views were unsuccessful with the reporting window of about 5 hours. Several represent churches and other organizations whose statements on gay marriage are readily available online, such as this statement from Huntsville's Rev. Dr. Julius Scruggs, president of the National Baptist Convention and pastor of Huntsville's First Missionary Baptist Church, issued in June 2012 after Pres. Obama announced his support for marriage equality.